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Original poster

Question about type 1 diabetes.. have got myself in a right state here... anybody???

25 replies

humptydidit · 31/05/2011 22:49

Hi exH is diagnosed type 1 diabetic last year.

He has been prescribed insulin and metformin by the hospital diabetic nurse and worked hard to get his sugar levels under control and within acceptable limits.
He sent his driving license to DVLA with the medical form etc to inform them of his diabetes.
He has just told me tonight that he is no longer taking his insulin and that he has not taken his metformin for about a month. He is not registered with a gp and has done this off his own bat without any medical advice...

My question is, would it be considered safe for him to drive if he is not controlling his insulin/glucose levels at all?

I'm sorry if I haven't explained that properly, but this is my now exH who seems to be in self destruct mode and I am wondering if it is appropriate for him to take our kids out in the car if his diabetes is not being properly regulated?

I am open to being flamed for being overprotective, but he has wound me up and I am worried about it

Thanks

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Original poster

humptydidit · 31/05/2011 23:06

sorry bumping

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sharbie · 31/05/2011 23:13

my h is insulin dep type 1. as far as i know your exh is not safe to drive if he hasn't had his insulin.the metformin is not so important as i understand it.i wd have thought your exh wd become v ill if he is not taking his insulin - did he say how long he has stopped it for? and why?
sorry don't want to worry you but it doesn't sound a great idea to me.

Original poster

humptydidit · 31/05/2011 23:19

sharbie thanks for replying...

He is a manipulative bloke who likes to say things to make me feel bad and freak me out and most of it I just ignore... But when he said this I thought he has gone too far...

TBH I think it is totally irresponsible for him to not be registered with a gp at the moment and have no access to proper diabetes care. I just understood that the whole driving thing was a big deal because you had to send in your license etc so I assumed that it really matters to control your diabetes especially around driving.

I think that without the insulin his glucose will go too high which is less dangerous than it dropping too low where he will pass out or fall asleep at the wheel.. God I don't know what to do now tbh, I would never forgive myself if he had an accident with kids in the car just because he wasn't taking his meds properly and now he has said that, even if it was made up, then how can i trust him?????

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sharbie · 31/05/2011 23:24

just saw after i posted that he is fairly recently diagnosed - my h was diagnosed over 30 years ago so for him to stop his insulin wd have v bad effects fairly immediately but with your exh maybe not so noticeable.needs to be sorted though.i agree re the irresponsibility and trusting issues - ime it can be quite a mood altering condition which can make people behave in an odd way.
i wd have to try and stop him taking dcs in car if it was me - if that's at all possible.

Tigerbomb · 31/05/2011 23:29

My exh was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes in the last year.

His diabetes is uncontrolled and he has had to give his license up after being involved in a car accident. He had no warning and passed out at the wheel. Fortunately he was only doing low speeds and no one else was hurt, but that was only due to pure chance

There is no way I would allow my DC's in a car with someone who is not taking their medication.

Original poster

humptydidit · 31/05/2011 23:31

thanks ladies, I don't see how I can trust him in the car if he is being like this, no way, even if it's just a wind up???

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EightiesChick · 31/05/2011 23:37

My DH also has T1 diabetes. It's actually the insulin that - if you don't take the right amount - can send you into a hypo which is what's dangerous if you're driving. So while not being on insulin actually removes that risk, in the long term it's no good for him as being a T1 diabetic he needs to be on insulin or eventually very bad things will happen - strokes, blindness, death.

Why isn't he taking his meds? Does he think he's 'cured' himself by getting his sugars under control? Sadly it doesn't work like that.

My answer would be - the kids are not in any immediate danger in being in the car with him. Not being on his meds will make him feel ill but in quite a gradual way. But it does need to be addressed long term. Do you think he is telling you this deliberately to worry you? If so I would be careful to react calmly and not get visibly bothered by it.

The metformin's neither here nor there, really. Doctors differ on whether they think it does anything for T1s. It won't affect his driving.

Original poster

humptydidit · 31/05/2011 23:44

thanks eighties that kind of helps to know that there is no immediate danger.

I rang him back and asked him if he is taking the meds or not and he now denies every having said anything about it . I think that this is all part of the game for him to wind me up which is why I wanted to understand the risks... I hope that makes sense!!!

Whatever the immediate risks, it still doesn't say much about him being a responsible parent but I guess that's a different matter!

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lulurose · 01/06/2011 09:02

I don't want to worry you but if your ex H has stopped his insulin he could be in alot of danger. When insulin is not present in the body of a T1 DKA develops (Diabetic ketoacidiosis). His sugars will be sky high and he his ability to function will be severley impaired. After a few days without insulin sickness and coma will develop. DKA is a killer if not treated.

Sorry, I only know this through experience, my DD developed T1 and was misdiagnosed twice. her body went into DKA and we nearly lost her, thankfully we got her to A and E and hooked upto an insulin drip in time. Its no joke and high blood sugars can be just as dangerous as low ones.

debinaboat · 01/06/2011 09:51

agree with lulurose ,its a bit of a myth that low sugar levels (hypo) are the most dangerous . too high a sugar level (which is what will happen if he is not taking his insulin because its the insulin keeps the level "normal") can be a killer too .

Original poster

humptydidit · 01/06/2011 12:25

Am currently waiting to hear from solicitor about how to handle it... I don't want him driving kids about or if i'm honest in charge of 3 kids if he's off his meds, I just think it's irresponsible and

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Samvet · 01/06/2011 12:29

google diabetic ketoacidosis - this is not good while driving or taking care of kids.

paddyclamp · 01/06/2011 14:07

i've got type 1 and if i stopped taking my insulin i would become very ill very quickly..in fact if i missed a single injection i would start to feel awful..is he definitely type 1?

controlpantsandgladrags · 01/06/2011 14:20

I think he's talking bollocks (to be blunt!). If he had Type 1 and hasn't taken any insulin for a month, he would be dead.

As paddy says, he would become very ill very quickly without it.

Original poster

humptydidit · 01/06/2011 14:50

ladies, I am 99% sure that this is all bollocks, he is just doing this for attention like a child would

Still waiting for solicitor to phone and advise what I do about the weekend

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Mandy2003 · 01/06/2011 20:43

I have Type 1 and I do not drive. It was fine when I did, I would test my blood sugar before setting off and always make sure I had sweets and Lucozade with me. But driving without having taken insulin or with high blood sugar - NO WAY!! The only way I can describe the effects of this is it makes you behave STUPIDLY, aggressive, poor judgement and eyesight is affected - imagine your vision "folding in" from the outer corners...!

However, many years ago I had a friend with Type 1. He smoked dope every day and apparently this lowered his blood sugar (this is what causes the munchies in non-diabetics) Or to be politically correct - People With Diabetes! According to the specialists he had probably been treating his diabetes like this for 30 years. But he was a bit moody!

So in answer to your OP - do not let your DC in the car with him!!!!

EightiesChick · 01/06/2011 22:58

If your ex was only diagnosed last year, he is likely to have a less common form of T1 - there are variants called late onset type 1 or LADA (latent autoimmune diabetes in adults). Before then he may have felt ill for quite some time without being dangerously so or going into ketoacidosis - although of course some people do. But my point is that it is possible for diabetics to spend a significant amount of time not on insulin, both before and after diagnosis, and to feel ill but not be at the point of death or collapse.

However, from what you've said, it sounds about right that he is making this up for dramatic effect, or at the very least exaggerating. I notice he pulled back when questioning. I would continue to be watchful and to put this whole interchange on record with the solicitor. You could consider saying you want him to do a blood test, in front of you, before he drives off with the kids so you can see he's not stupidly high or low - should be between 4-7, though one higher result isn't disastrous. DVLA advice is don't drive when you're under 5 or 5.5, can't remember which.

Original poster

humptydidit · 02/06/2011 10:23

thanks all, spoke to solicitor, have got the ok from him that I can refuse exH access to kids if he is not medicating properly.

Solicitor said a very dim view would be taken of parents who "joke" about things like that. He says it is irresponsible to joke around about taking medication if you are hoping to take responsibiltiey of children.

This is kind of a separate issue... But thanks all for the reassurance and advise.

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PacificDogwood · 02/06/2011 10:29

Well, he sounds like a manipulative shit!
Glad to hear the legal advice you got.
I think I would take the stance 'you told me you are not treating your DM properly, I have concerns about the kids' safety, so will not have you drive them'.
Re not taking insulin: apart from the longterm complications as outlined above there is the very real risk of diabetic ketoacidosis which would affect him as suddenly as a hypo can make him pass out, but would make him seriously and life-threatening ill in the space of days.
What a twat.

PacificDogwood · 02/06/2011 10:30

'...which would not affect him as suddenly...'

Sorry, didn't preview

Original poster

humptydidit · 02/06/2011 20:33

thanks pacific he is an attention seeking emotionally abusive wanker, and at last he has dropped himself right in it... I think they call it karma!!!

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thumbwitch · 02/06/2011 20:39

Glad your solicitor has given you useful advice - and hope the ex sorts his moronic behaviour out, although that seems doubtful! Diabetes isn't a joke, it isn't something to mess around with either and if he truly has stopped his meds he will soon find out his mistake - if he was just "joking" about it then he'll hopefully learn not to do so again when his access visits are revoked on the grounds that no one can tell how responsible a parent he is because he makes stupidly irresponsible "jokes" about serious things.

Original poster

humptydidit · 02/06/2011 21:39

@ thumbwitch

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AngryFeet · 03/06/2011 22:47

My 26 year old friend died from bleeding in his stomach last year due to mucking around not taking his insulin properly. He was fine one day and the next keeled over in the middle of the night and was found dead 2 days later. Not sure about the driving stuff but you might want to remind him how serious it can be. My friend was angry about having diabetes and tried to rebel against it and paid with his life :-(

Original poster

humptydidit · 03/06/2011 22:49

angryfeet that is so expecially for such a young person

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